Affordability of a college education, affordable health care and the economic crisis are among the most pertinent issues in the upcoming election, according to the candidates vying to represent Louisiana’s 6th Congressional District. Don Cazayoux, Democrat incumbent of about six months, is running against Bill Cassidy, 2006 Republican Louisiana senator elect, and Michael Jackson, a Democratic state representative of eight years running as an independent, in the Nov. 4 elections.Cazayoux, an LSU alumnus with college-aged children, said he hopes to alleviate financial stressors on students by ensuring college educations are financially attainable for everybody. He said he has continually supported the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students (TOPS) and need-based scholarships.”Tuition is covered by TOPS for most people at LSU,” he said. “We keep seeing ways around that tuition approach by increasing fees … And I think that’s a huge issue.”Cassidy, associate professor of medicine with the LSU Health Science Center, said he considers financial aid important. Cassidy borrowed money to finance his way through medical school, he said.”If you are taking out student loans to finance your education and all of a sudden the credit markets go up, your rate of borrowing increases,” he said. “If I’m truly concerned about students being able to borrow that money to go to medical school, then I’ve got to do something that makes sure that they have a reasonable interest rate at which to borrow.”Cassidy said he has shown continuous support for TOPS.Jackson, a lawyer and manager of a small law firm, called himself “someone who has a record of working across party lines to get things done” and said his history as a state representative makes him the prime candidate amid disconnection between Democrats and Republicans. “We recognize that there’s a lot of bickering between national parties,” he said. “We think we offer people an option.”Jackson said he has often heard the call for affordable college tuition among young people. He said he plans to streamline the process of applying for student loans by coupling the application with tax return paperwork and, if elected, he will work to provide grants to students who participate in public service and raise Pell Grants. “When you talk about the economy, I think college students are concerned that they’re going to be able to find a job so that they can pay back those student loans,” he said.Jackson supports Sen. Barack Obama in the upcoming presidential elections and applauds his health care proposal, he said.  ”Our focus in Louisiana has got to be about how you insure more people and how you create a delivery system that makes sense,” he said. Both Cazayoux and Jackson said they support democratic incumbent Sen. Mary Landrieu in the upcoming senatorial election. “Her seniority and experience in getting things done for Louisiana is, I think, something we should cherish and try to protect,” Cazayoux said.Cazayoux said he has officially endorsed Obama in the upcoming election, but he said he will “work with whomever is elected.”Cassidy said he supports fellow GOP members Sen. John McCain and State Treasurer John Kennedy in the upcoming presidential and senatorial elections, respectively.”I actually think that conservative politics is the best course for our country,” he said. —-Contact Lindsey Meaux at [email protected]